London

• The poem centres from a first-person perspective on an anonymous speaker (who could be assumed to be Blake) walking through London, and commenting on the filth and corruption he sees, including the child labour, monarchial abuse, and prostitution he witnesses.
• The poem is short and obvious in its criticisms of the authorities which have allowed the city to get into such a dangerous and unpleasant state.
• William Blake was an English poet and artist, who was writing during the Romantic literary era.
• William Blake lived in London for most of his life, and saw it as corrupted by greed and inequality.
• William Blake thought his city was dirty and corrupt, both literally and metaphorically, and as he thought this was largely due to the political situation lots of his poetry was about political subjects.
• Poetry was William Blake's passion and he would use it to try and instigate change.
• William Blake wrote using simple language so his message was accessible to all.
• William Blake stood against oppressing women and supported equality.
• In London, the place is real but has symbolic values, with buildings symbolizing institutions of power.
• In the Emigreé, the place is fantasy, symbolizing the city the protagonist remembers, which no longer exists.
• William Blake educated his wife, teaching her to read and write, and eventually she became his business partner.
• William Blake identified as Christian, but rejected organised religion and established church because he saw it as corrupt and hypocritical.
• William Blake strongly disagreed with the fact that they put money into new buildings whilst the poor starved.
• The poem suggests that the citizens are branded too by their experiences.
• The poem explores the theme of authoritarian abuses of power, set in the capital of arguably the most important country in the world at the time: London.
• Blake was a hopeful poet who tried to use his talent at writing to motivate change.
• The poem would probably have been considered revolutionary within his society, as he is attacking the ‘establishment’.
• The title “London” suggests that the poem is about the city of London.
• The poem juxtaposes the purity and love expected of the religious institution.
• The poem is a criticism of organised religion, and its failure to provide for the disadvantaged members of society.
• The figurative interpretation of the poem can be found through the negative connotations of immorality and evil derived from “black’ning”.
• The poem uses repetition of “marks” to emphasize the permanent impact of place’s power with wide-reaching and exception-free extent.
• The poem employs an immensely negative tone, which replicates his own disillusionment with both the government and the monarchy, as well as the Church.
• The poem juxtaposes the innocence of youth with immorality of harlot.
• IAMBIC TETRAMETER | Technique where the poet uses eight syllables in each line, with pairs of sounds going da-DA with the emphasis on the second syllable.
• The first/second stanzas of the poem focus on impact on people, the third explores the source of suffering, and the fourth goes back to the impact again.
• Blake wanted his poetry to feel accessible to all members of society because it contains messages and views everyone should consider and take on, and this works with a monologue as it sets up a conversation.
• Blake is fairly consistent in his use of iambic tetrameter, showing order and control, as the consistency of a rhythm provides a sense of the relentless oppression.
• The poem uses the phrase “in every” , with “every” also repeated within the lines (seven times in total throughout poem), emphasising the extreme extent of the suffering, showing how it impacts everyone with no discrimination.
• The structure of the poem may reflect how frustrated Blake is that the general public won’t stand up to the institutions of power which are controlling them.
• The effect of this structure is for Blake to suggest suffering is never ending, and implies to the reader that they will keep suffering until they break the cycle and rebel against society, like the French did during the revolution.
• Blake employs an ABAB rhyme scheme, along with consistent stanza lengths, using quatrains (4 lines) to enhance the sense of complete control and oppression which could mimic the way he feels lower classes are trapped in London.
• The poem is also written in first person to make it seem personal: this is the speaker’s own experience of London, and his home and his views.
• Dramatic Monologue London is written with a first-person speaker speaking passionately about what he sees and experiences, combined with simple language in an almost conversational tone.
• London was published during the “reign of terror” of the French Revolution.
• The French Revolution became an inspiration for many radicals as it was a symbol of how the disenfranchised and oppressed could seize power from the privileged.
• The French Revolution resulted in the end of the French monarchy, which is what William Blake was hoping for in England, which ended when Louis XVI was executed in 1793.
• The French Revolution was followed by "reign of terror", with thousands executed via guillotine.
• England transformed into an industrial power, and oversaw a mass movement to cities from the countryside.
• The term "Chartered" means government gave the wealthy exclusive rights to land and resources that had been previously owned in common, which meant the wealthy started owning monopolies of land.